Spring clean computer inside and out

Shortly after completing last week’s Untangled Web covering housecleaning websites, I found myself on a major web portal perusing an article about spring cleaning the computer. I thought I would take a look to see how many tips it had appropriated from back numbers of The Wire and Untangled Web when I was surprised to read something entirely different.

Instead of the usual advice about using anti-spyware utilities and scanning for viruses, this feature offered hints that could very easily lead to problems. I make it a point to advise readers not to undertake computing projects that seem even the slightest bit confusing. We all know that attempting an operation that is beyond our individual skill level has the potential to result in serious data loss, even a complete meltdown.

On this site the author is advising his readers on ways to tweak the computer by modifying the Windows registry. I have seen computers in which tinkering with the registry led to total disaster. I cannot imagine who that writer thought he was addressing, offering tips to a mass audience that even some so-called experts could find confusing.

Still, the idea of a computer spring cleaning is a good one. Like the concept of changing smoke-alarm batteries when you turn the clocks forward, an annual reminder to check out the system is a good thing. This way, users know that at least once a year the system will be clean and fresh and ready to face the perils of the Information Age again.

I would like to address this issue in two ways for the spring of 2007. I want to cover some physical cleanliness aspects for starters, then take a look at hard drive and data storage issues. Between the two, I hope to leave you with a nice neat system for cleaning with very little chance of disaster. As always, if you do doubt you can follow these tips, please do not attempt them. Consult a computer professional for the services you need.

Un-smudge the monitor

One of the most mystifying cleanup tasks in all computing is the flat-screen monitor. Now that just about everyone has a laptop or other electronic device with a flat screen, many users have found these space-saving devices a cleaning challenge.

Forget spray cleaners, glass cleaners, and especially opaque cleansers. Do not even think about using furniture wax or appliance cleaner. This goes for those expensive big-screen televisions, too. I have seen more than one megabuck HD unit smudged senseless by a can of lemon-fresh furniture wax and a dusty rag.

These screens are not made of glass. They are constructed of a very sensitive material that can be easily damaged by incorrect cleaning. Before attempting anything like this, consult the manufacturer of your individual monitor for specific instructions. Many screens can be successfully cleaned by using the process I found at www.dvhardware.net and several other sites.

Head to your underwear drawer and pick out the oldest lint-free T-shirt you can find. This makes a perfect cleaning cloth. To concoct the perfect streak-free cleaning fluid, mix equal parts of distilled water and pure isopropyl alcohol. Both can be purchased at a good drug store.

Mark these bottles well and store them carefully out of the reach of children and pets, as the mixture is toxic. Unplug the monitor, computer and any other connected devices to prevent shock. Lightly dampen the soft cloth with the solution and clean the screen carefully using very, very little pressure.  Do not press! Never wet the monitor itself; always place the solution on the cleaning cloth.

This should be enough to remove most of the dirt and leave a clear portal. If this process is too involved, you can always buy a commercial cleaning kit that may contain the exact same thing for about four times the price. Again, be sure to consult the manufacturer’s recommendations before taking any steps toward cleaning any modern monitor or television.

Spare the cleaner

The remainder of your system’s exterior is significantly hardier. Here at the Institute, we use a popular blue spray cleaner to freshen computer cases and peripherals. Hard-to-remove scuffs and stains usually surrender to light rubbing with a white pencil eraser. Always use cleaning fluids very sparingly, and be careful cleaning inside the system with pressurized cleaners.

With the physical cleaning handled, let us take a quick look inside your system to see what we can tidy up. First and foremost, you will want to make a full backup of all your important data, either on CD or DVD, an external hard drive, or a tape backup unit. This should be done frequently, but once a year is far, far better than never. Stash your backup in a safe place and we can continue.

Clean out and compress files

First, you will want to delete all the useless temporary files your web surfing has built up over the past few months. This function is usually handled by your web browser. In Internet Explorer, you can find it under the tools pull-down in the options section.

You can also manage unnecessary files by using the disk cleanup function. Click the start button and go to the system tools area in the accessories section of your programs menu. Find disk cleanup in there and invoke it. Get comfortable, as the utility takes a while to determine the actual state of your system, including how much space can be saved by compressing old files.

Windows will present you with a list of places where you can delete items to save space. Check it carefully and be sure that you do not delete anything important. Then check it again. When you approve the function, those files are essentially gone forever. I do not use the compress files option; I find it time consuming and annoying for the small amount of space that will be saved. You can make your own choice.

Defragment the drive

Once you have cleared out some space, you may want to consider defragmenting the hard drive. You can find an extensive procedure on this process at www.support.microsoft.com/kb/305781, courtesy of Microsoft. This is a process that can cause problems if not completed properly, so read the information carefully and do not attempt it if you think it is too difficult.

Now that the inner workings of your hard drive are tidy, you may want to do the same thing for your files. Nobody likes rooting around the hard drive to find something, or worse, having to use the Windows search feature. If you put your files in order once and follow an organizational system, finding things will be a breeze in the future. You can find some tips from the master concerning the proper organization of data files at http://www.microsoft.com/atwork/manageinfo/files.mspx, thanks to Microsoft.

No dining on the desktop

While you are making rules, consider banning the consumption of all food and drink around the computer. Make sure the system is placed where there is adequate air flow to promote proper cooling, and try to keep tower cases away from carpeting and other sources of dust. A dusty computer, as we all know, cannot keep its components cool and will wear out faster.

Those are my spring computer cleaning tips for 2007. These are simply suggestions, of course. Your needs may be significantly different from the scenarios I described here. Again, do not attempt any of these tasks if you are not positive that you are able to complete them properly. Finally, once you get everything in order, drop me a note at granese@juno.com and let me know how it went.